Bone supported palatal expansion appliance

Abstract

The appliance comprises a machined or cast interface that secures the appliance to bone by means of an appliance connection and a bone connection. The connection is a cylindrical sleeve into which each arm of the expansion appliance is inserted. This connection is maintained by crimping the sleeve over the easily modified activating rods of the expansion appliance, thus preventing separation or rotation of the device. The bone connection is a threaded hole in the connector sleeve into which a self-drilling screw is inserted. The screw engages the bone in a manner determined by the design and location of the expansion appliance.

Description

[0001]The benefits of 35 U.S.C. 119 are claimed of provisional patent application 61 / 003,393 filed Nov. 19, 2007.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Transverse maxillary deficiency affects a significant number of patients who seek orthodontic treatment. It is estimated that transverse maxillary deficiency is present in as many as 18% of children with deciduous and mixed dentitions who seek orthodontic consultation. Orthopedic expansion of the maxilla, also called rapid palatal expansion (RPE), is a commonly accepted practice in young patients. The technique was first introduced by Angel in 1860 and popularized by Haas in the 1960s. The effectiveness of this procedure in patients prior to skeletal maturity has been repeatedly validated.[0003]Besides tooth-anchored devices, bone anchored expansion devices offer promise in circumventing problems found in conventional devices. With bone distracters, expansion of the maxilla is purely orthopedic, without the dental side effects, because the...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The invention is a bone distracter that can be easily customized by a dentist for different patient needs. It uses a modified expansion screw device with two closely approximated parallel activation rods that are both textured and non-circular in shape. The device also includes four cylindrical connector sleeves that are securely attached to the activation rods using crimpable connector sleeves. The screws engage the patient's bone in a way determined by the location of the expansion appliance. The technical effect of this invention is that it provides a flexible and customizable tool for dentists to adjust the position of bones in the mouth."

Problems solved by technology

The reason it is not widely accepted by clinicians; however, is that there is not a user-friendly appliance available.

Another reason is that they are relatively costly compared to traditional tooth-borne maxillary expansion devices.

Attempts to orthopedically expand the maxilla in skeletally mature patients can cause undesired lateral tipping and extrusion of posterior teeth, buccal root resorption, gingival recession, fenestration of the buccal cortex and instability and ultimately failure of treatment.

These devices are engineered similar to other commercially available craniofacial distraction osteogenesis devices, and therefore share limitations, including expense, complicated construction and somewhat limited customization.

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